Wario Ware Inc.

The first screenshot of this game a saw was a drawing of an anime-esque girl with a HUGE drip coming out of her nose. Suffice to say I was completely wierded out. It wasn’t until I actually played the game that I realized the genius behind it all. Wario Ware, Inc. may not seem like much of a game at first but once you get started you’ll have a hard time stopping, especially with all the cool stuff you can unlock during the course of the game.

One day Wario is sitting around watching TV when he sees a news broadcast that will shape the game. Video game sales are through the roof and Wario, being the wonderfully greedy character that he is, decides to make his own game. He’s also calling on a bunch of friends to help, who also provide their own games that range from bizarre to classic. Controls are amazing simple involving only the A button and the directional pad. Most games will give you on screen instructions but most are very easy to figure out and shouldn’t provide any problem.

Now lets get to the Mega Microgames that shape this title. When the game starts Wario hops onto a trampoline and lands himself inside a stereo and then the game gets underway. Immediately you are prompted to do something, in my case it was “Jump” and a giant hot dog went flying at Wario, before I knew it I was hit, and I failed that stage. And as quick as I could yell out “Holy crap this game is cheap!” the next game had started. It turns out I had four lives, well three by now. The next game I was a bit more prepared. “Catch” flashed on the screen and Wario was sitting at a bar, all of a sudden a glass comes from the left side of the screen, BAM caught the glass.

Thirteen stages later I reach the “Boss Stage” this stage wasn’t three seconds long like the last couple of games had been, instead I was presented with a punching bag and Wario. Four punches later I was on my way to the next stage featuring a guy named Jimmy with the biggest afro in gaming to date. Fifteen games later I’m off to a branch stage where I get to pick between characters and I’m sure you can get where this is going. One character featured old school NES games, Zelda, Metroid, Duck Hunt, Excitebike and more. Once you complete the game you can then go back and challenge a specific character and in the process unlock more games. One of the unlocked games pays a bit of hommage to Dr. Mario, you’ll see what I mean when you unlock it.

The graphics are at times simplistic and other times quite good looking. One game features a line art image of a hand with fingers and a nose, and of course, get your picking on. The sound is also pretty interesting, one stage has Japanese folk music playing as you run through a giant house. Most games have their own specific music and sound effects though.

Wario Ware, Inc. is by far the strangest game I’ve ever played, and it is also one of the most enjoyable games I have ever played. It has a short life span however this game deserves some time in your GBA. Get it while you can because I see a lot of people missing out on this game when Nintendo pulls it from shelves because it didn’t sell well.

Nintendo sends us one from waaaaaay left field that is nothing short of insanity, and gaming brilliance.

Rating: 9.1 Excellent

* The product in this article was sent to us by the developer/company.

About Author

In a past life I worked with Interplay, EA, Harmonix, Konami, and a number of other developers. Now I'm working for a record label, a small arm of casual games in a media company along with Gaming Nexus, and anywhere else that sees fit to employ me.